BTL:NOW: GOP Assault on Middle Class is a 'War on Women'

Interview with Terry O'Neill, president of the National Organization for Women, conducted by Melinda Tuhus <!--break--> NOW: GOP Assault on Middle Class is a 'War on Women' Interview with Terry O'Neill, president of the National Organization for Women, conducted by Melinda Tuhus With Republicans in leadership in the U.S. House of Representatives and a majority of states in the hands of Republican governors and legislatures, budget cuts and policy changes are being proposed -- and in many cases, passed -- that disproportionately impact women, especially women of color. At the federal level, U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., won passage in the House of his 2012 budget proposal that would convert Medicare from a program in which the government pays medical bills of senior citizens over 65 years of age --- into a voucher system that provides inadequate subsidies to purchase private insurance coverage. The GOP budget would also make major cuts to social safety net programs, such as food stamps, and impose a 35 percent cut on Medicaid and turn the program into state-administered block grants. In contrast to the deep cuts, Ryan’s budget reduces the tax burden on the nation’s wealthiest citizens and big corporations. Story continues http://www.btlonline.org/2011/seg/110513bf-btl-oneill.html

<p>Interview with Terry O'Neill, president of the National Organization for Women, conducted by Melinda Tuhus</p> <!--break--><p>NOW: GOP Assault on Middle Class is a 'War on Women'</p> <p>Interview with Terry O'Neill, president of the National Organization for Women, conducted by Melinda Tuhus </p> <p> With Republicans in leadership in the U.S. House of Representatives and a majority of states in the hands of Republican governors and legislatures, budget cuts and policy changes are being proposed -- and in many cases, passed -- that disproportionately impact women, especially women of color. At the federal level, U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., won passage in the House of his 2012 budget proposal that would convert Medicare from a program in which the government pays medical bills of senior citizens over 65 years of age --- into a voucher system that provides inadequate subsidies to purchase private insurance coverage. The GOP budget would also make major cuts to social safety net programs, such as food stamps, and impose a 35 percent cut on Medicaid and turn the program into state-administered block grants. In contrast to the deep cuts, Ryan’s budget reduces the tax burden on the nation’s wealthiest citizens and big corporations. </p> <p>Story continues</p> <p><a href="http://www.btlonline.org/2011/seg/110513bf-btl-oneill.html">http://www.btlonline.org/2011/seg/110513bf-btl-oneill.html</a></p>